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Vampire
Vampires are a race of deceased humans who have been reanimated through the use of presumably powerful demon magic, which curses the human spirits to remain inside their dead corpses, granting them a distorted form of life after death. Vampires are notorious for their diet, which consists of the blood of the living, human or otherwise, and can transform other humans into new members of their species through bite or blood. Their existence is mostly known to only other supernatural species, and has largely remained hidden from the majority human population. Description Vampires appear very distinct from humans. After their transformation, vampires tend to look paler than their former human selves, and somewhat thinner and sometimes sickly as though malnourished. Their body temperature is much colder, as they are literally reanimated human corpses, and they lack a heartbeat. Their irises also turn into a noticeably darker shade, becoming varying shades of red when angered, hungry or thirsty. Most notably, vampires gain a set of retractable, razor-sharp fangs that most often extend from their upper canines, sharp enough to pierce through the skin and flesh of even werewolves and fellow vampires. They extend automatically whenever they are angered or when their bloodlust is roused, and contain venom which can be injected into the bloodstream of their victims through bite, which triggers the victim's transition into a vampire (with the notable exception of werewolves as it is simply lethal to them; and vampires, which will simply make them sick for some time before recovering). Some vampires, especially those who are on the path to becoming a Feralis, also have fangs in their lower canines or other teeth as well, accompanied with more monstrous and less-than-human-like appearances. Vampires' primary diet consists of blood, typically human blood, though they can also consume animal blood to alleviate some of their thirst though not offering them as much nourishment nor taste as good as human blood does. The blood is preferred fresh, and packaged or stored blood offers them less nourishment than when they are fresh. They can also consume vampire blood, though usually less preferred as it is often noted to taste the worst compared to human or animal blood, and cannibalism is usually frowned upon. Consuming vampire blood also increases the likelihood of the individual losing their humanity and becoming a Feralis. In addition to this, vampires cannot typically digest human food as their bodies no longer require it and would reject it, but some can consume food without regurgitating it immediately through practice. Society The Pureblood vampires who survived he incident that came to be known as the Purge, banded together to form the Vampire Council, which is headed by the vampire queen Lilith. Collectively, they govern over the vampire society and implement laws, which also have to be approved through the Hunters' Order, which all vampires have to follow and live by to ensure that peace is maintained within the community, otherwise the Council will deal punishments to guilty parties and individuals accordingly and as necessary. These punishments can range from physical torture, being starved of blood, or even exile and death. A group of three or more vampires with similar interests can join together to form a clan, where they can vote for a leader to act upon the clan's interests as well as represent them in meetings with other clans or even official Council meetings. Clan leaders are also often sires or progenitors of other members of the clan. Notably, over time, the traits of vampires within the same clan can and may change and evolve depending on their collective actions and motives. For example, a clan dedicated on assimilating themselves with humans and act upon their greater good may have members who appear more human-like than typical vampires as well as possessing a more-controlled bloodlust, while a clan that kills mercilessly merely to satisfy their thirst may develop more animalistic features, including a second set of fangs and more feral appearances. Creation The primary method of turning humans, witches and even Hunters into vampires is through biting them and injecting the target with vampire venom. The venom triggers the target's transformation into a vampire as it slowly begins to alter the target's physiology, with the notable exception of werewolves and other vampires, as it is lethal for the former and has no effect on the latter. Directly after the bite, the target then proceeds to the first stage of their transformation and becomes a fledgling; their body begins to slowly decay as they are technically dying, despite the slightly enhanced healing factor they are granted, alongside a fraction of other powers and abilities such as slightly enhanced strength, speed, etc. They can still consume human food albeit a limited amount, but their body will start rejecting the food unless laced with a few drops of blood. The fledgling must then consume a certain amount of vampire blood to complete their transition into a full-fledged vampire, otherwise they will die from the venom in their blood. The blood must come from the same vampire who first bit and injected their venom into the target fledgling, otherwise the blood and venom will reject each other and the venom will kill the individual regardless. The vampire blood will eventually replace the fledgling's human blood and complete the final physiological altercations, bestowing greater powers and abilities to the newly-turned vampire over time. It is recommended that a fledgling also completes their transition before the next blood moon since they are first bitten, as fledglings' hearts still pump human blood, in addition to the venom, throughout their bodies, and as such, they may become delicious targets to other vampires who are under the effect of the Blood Moon, including their own progenitors. Sire Bond Upon becoming a fledgling, a vampire forms a special bond with their progenitor, or the vampire who bit them and cause the transition to occur in the first place, called a sire bond. It is a mental, empathic link which binds the progenitor and the progeny together, allowing them to telepathically communicate with each other, draw or send strength from or to one another, sense their emotions and even sense and share their pain. However, the limits of these abilities are heightened the further the distance between both vampires are, both physically and emotionally. A vampire would also sense when their sire dies, and can experience great pain at the moment of their death, though this also depends on the strength of their relationship. For example, sires who were lovers would experience excruciating pain, as though they themselves have just died alongside their partner. On the other hand, Jesse Copeland, who despised his progenitor Lady Boudreaux at the time of her death, could sense that she died but felt nothing of it. Another notable feature of the sire bond is that it allows a vampire's blood to heal their sire when consumed. Their blood is also mentioned to be able to bring their sire back to life within a very short window of time just after their sire's death. History Vampires were first created when a group of humans from Wallachia (present-day Romania) conducted a demonic ritual on the night of a total lunar eclipse, seeking the help of a demon to be able to defeat their enemies in an upcoming battle. The demon shared its blood with them, which subsequently turned them into Pureblood vampires, and the first known vampires in existence. Though granted superior physical abilities that allowed them to vanquish their foes with ease, the vampires were also cursed to having to forever hide in the shadows, unable to step under the sun during daylight, and have to consume blood and/or flesh of the living for sustenance. Lacking control over and knowledge of their thirst, the vampires soon ravaged a local human village, turning many of the villagers into vampires as well. In retaliation, the surviving human villagers, desperate to get rid of the vampires, sought help from a powerful witch, who bestowed the humans with enhanced physical and supernatural abilities, creating the first supernatural Hunters in existence. The Hunters were able to eradicate most of the vampires, driving the rest into hiding. The remaining Purebloods formed the existing Council, led by their queen Lilith, and created their own community, hidden in the shadows and their existence remaining a secret from the rest of the world until today. More to be added. Powers and Abilities Upon their transition into a full-fledged vampire, the supernatural forces that sustain them grant not only prolonged life after death, but also various superhuman powers and abilities, both physical and mental. Most of these skills can be improved through training but will also grow with age and experience. Vampires who feed on fresh human blood are also noticeably more powerful than those who feed on packaged human blood or animal blood. Fledglings have a portion of these abilities, though they are greatly enhanced upon becoming full-fledged. * Enhanced Strength: Vampires are noticeably stronger than Hunters, and much more than humans and werewolves in their human forms, and slowly grow stronger as they grow older. Fledglings can still toss an average-size, fully-grown human across a room with great speed and force, and full-fledged vampires can topple even larger structures of vehicles. They can single-handedly lift grown men and other vampires from the ground by grabbing their throats, and even snap their necks or rip out internal organs with little to no effort. Their strength also allows them to jump higher and further than any natural creature. * Enhanced Speed: Vampires are faster than Hunters, and much more than humans and werewolves in their human forms. Vampires can accelerate their movements to cover short distances in an instant, sometimes too fast for the human eye to see. Their reflexes and dexterity are similarly heightened, allowing them to catch certain projectiles such as arrows or bullets in the air with ease. Like their strength, their speed also increases with age. * Enhanced Agility: Vampires possess superhuman agility, are able to move quickly, jump very high, climb, and run incredibly fast without difficulty or exhaustion. * Enhanced Durability: Vampires can take a great amount of physical damage and strain without being hindered. Even vampires who have been shot with wooden bullets, which have a weakening effect on vampires, or suffered extensive wounds have been seen to continue fighting so long as they were not shot in the heart or the head. Vampires still react to physical force in a human manner, particularly newly-turned vampires, who can still occasionally be affected even by human force. Vampires can also still be stunned and dazed by strikes and trauma, though their tolerance for it will increase as they get older. * Heightened Senses: Vampires have extremely keen senses of hearing, sight, smell and touch that far exceed those of humans, witches and Hunters. They can hear whispered conversations, even ones in distant buildings and on phones, though most vampires typically learn how to tune out most ambient noises when it is unnecessary to hear them. Vampires can also smell blood or other smells for up to a kilometer away, and can still see in total darkness. These senses improve and grow stronger with age and experience. Their senses of taste are also enhanced as well, allowing them to detect the presence of drugs or alcohol in someone's blood, or identify the source of the blood, whether it is human, animal, vampire or another species. * Healing Factor: Vampires recover tissue from any form of physical damage to their bodies within seconds, though they still feel the pain of the wound until it fully heals. Vampires can snap their bones back into place after they have been broken and have been seen to fully recover from gunshots, stab wounds, and torso impalement very quickly, so long as they consume enough human blood prior to the injury and maintain a healthy diet. Those vampires who feed on animals will heal slightly slower than those who feed on human blood. The healing factor, however, is only limited to physical damage, meaning that magical or psychological damage are far beyond its capability. It is also ineffective against werewolf bites, as werewolf venom prevents the healing factor from working, and is unable to regrow detached limbs. * Immortality: Vampires stop aging once turned, and become immune to all conventional illness, diseases, viruses and infections. Due to the fact that they are reanimated corpses, they do not have a heartbeat and do not need to breathe, though they can still inhale and exhale air. This also makes them impervious to asphyxiation, drowning, or toxic gases. Weaknesses Despite the superhuman abilities they are granted after their transition, vampires are also subject to many weaknesses and vulnerabilities that other species are not as vulnerable to. * Bloodlust: Vampires can only consume blood for sustenance and to keep themselves alive. They typically drink human blood, though can also consume animal, witch or Hunter blood with varying effects from each. If a vampire goes without consuming blood for an extended period of time, they will eventually desiccate into a mummified state and die. * Sunlight: Sunlight, or any UV rays in particular, burn vampires on contact, and prolonged exposure will cause them to burst into flames and die. However, this weakness can be mitigated through the use of gemstones which have been enchanted with a protection spell with the help of a witch, usually affixed to jewelry, which allows vampires to walk in daylight while wearing said jewelry. * Fire: Vampires are extremely sensitive to fire, and will quickly burn and die upon immediate contact with open flames. * Heart Extraction: Removing the heart of a vampire will result in their permanent death. * Decapitation: Removing the head of a vampire will result in their permanent death. A broken neck, however, will merely incapacitate them and render them unconscious for a certain amount of time, depending on the vampire's age and diet, until the vampire's healing factor starts to heal the broken bone and the vampire eventually recovers. * Magic: Vampires are still susceptible to the effects of witchcraft; significantly fatal spells include telekinetically ripping out their hearts or snapping their necks, magically increasing their hunger for blood to unbearable levels and setting them ablaze with a single spell. * Werewolf Bite/Venom: The bite of a werewolf, which injects their venom into the bloodstream, is extremely lethal to vampires. It can cause them to hallucinate, grow severely weak and go rabid until it kills them. The bite can only be treated with the help of a witch, though there is only a small window of time to do so. * Werewolf Blood: Consuming werewolf blood is typically poisonous to vampires. It can cause them to vomit out the blood upon ingestion, and if the blood continues to remain in a vampire's system, it will eventually make them sick and become fatal to them. * Wood: Wounding a vampire with a wooden weapon, such as wooden stakes or bullets, will incapacitate them, and it will take longer for them to heal their injuries than if the wounds were caused by any other substance. Stabbing a vampire through the heart with a wooden stake will result in instantaneous and permanent death. * Holy Items: Vampires may be vulnerable to holy items such as holy water, crucifixes or any religious weapons, symbols and markings, though the degree of this can vary from person to person, and depends on the vampire's own religious beliefs prior to his/her transition. Therefore, a vampire who did not hold any religious beliefs during their time as a human will not be affected by holy water and crucifixes. However, all vampires cannot enter holy or blessed ground, including churches, temples, mosques or any places of worship. * Humanity Loss: Vampires is that they can lose their humanity if they consume too much human flesh or blood over a long period of time, or consume too much vampire blood or flesh over a shorter period of time. They can also choose to lose their humanity by 'shutting' their emotions off. Though this will grant the vampire heightened abilities as well as increased focus as they are no longer hindered by empathy, which is useful in the case of a lengthy battle, losing their humanity will eventually cause them to turn feral and begin their transition into a Feralis. * Blood Moon: Standing directly in the presence of a blood moon will cause heightened bloodlust for vampires and induce a temporary feral-like state into them until they are out of the direct exposure of the moon. Therefore, vampires become more susceptible to hunger or, adversely, overfeeding and subsequently humanity loss during the night of a blood moon. Fledglings are extremely vulnerable during blood moon nights; their inability to consume large amounts of human blood, since they are still partially human, may cause their bloodlust to overwhelm them, eventually causing them to desiccate and die from hunger. Their blood, which is still human, also attracts the hunger of any nearby vampires affected by the blood moon, and, as a result, they may become targeted by other vampires, even their own sires. * Bloodstone: The Bloodstone grants whoever possessing it the power to take full control of vampires within a certain radius, even against their will. Known Vampires * Lilith (Pureblood) * Nathaniel Jensen * Lady Boudreaux † * Jesse Copeland (Feralis) * Anthony St. Clair † * Juliet Lévesque * Matt Lévesque * Zeke Walker (Feralis) † * Krystal Woods Trivia TBA References TBA